Taiwan's precious trees

Taiwan's precious trees : 5 Needle Leaves Trees :

Chamaecyparis formosensis、
Chamaecyparis obtusa var. formosana、
Taiwania cryptomerioides、
Cunninghamia lanceolata var. konishii、
Calocedrus formosana / Taiwan Incense Cedar
all are native species of Taiwan. Extremely precious,
wood has a special aroma and color, all belong to Needle Leaves Trees, so it is called 5 Needle Leaves Trees.

Taiwan 5 precious Trees :
It is another saying,
Chamaecyparis formosensis and
Chamaecyparis obtusa var. formosana
are classified into the same category, called Taiwan Chamaecyparis,
plus
Taiwania cryptomerioides、
Cunninghamia lanceolata var. konishii、
Calocedrus formosana / Taiwan Incense Cedar、
Taxus chinensis,
collectively known as Taiwan 5 precious Trees.

Tree conservation :
The precious trees listed above has a special aroma and color, which is extremely precious.
In the past, because of the building materials, scented spices, sculptures, handicrafts, coffins, etc., its economic value is very high, and it has been cut down a lot. It has been classified as a conservation class and it is forbidden to cut down.
In Taiwan, forests are prohibited from logging, but hillsides can be applied for land development.
Therefore, some places with precious plants and animals will be classified as conservation areas and even national parks.
There are often unscrupulous people who sneak into the mountains and slash trees. They are called mountain mice.
Therefore, the Forest Service has prepared some mountain patrolman with there are about more 1,000 people .
In addition, there are forest policemen, but the forest police are the general administrative police. Transferring,
in the position / authority, has been controversial, still pending the government to resolve.
In Taiwan, according to the provisions of the Forest Law, the precious wood listed above, in addition to the culprits of the fellers, the purchaser and the picker are also guilty, can be sentenced to prison terms of more than 6 months or less 5 years, and USD 10,000 to USD 100,000 , in severe cases can be doubled.
So buying crafts made of precious wood, or going to the beach to pick up driftwood, is also guilty according to the definition of forest law.

Wood grade :
According to the classification of CNS 442 O1001 wood,
The four species of wood is first grade - Chamaecyparis formosensis、Chamaecyparis obtusa var. formosana、Cunninghamia lanceolata var. konishii、Calocedrus formosana / Taiwan Incense Cedar
Taiwan fir is a secondary wood.
The standard for this classification is based on the volume-weight, which is the hardness of the wood.

Taiwan Chamaecyparis :
Taiwan Chamaecyparis refers to both Chamaecyparis formosensis and Chamaecyparis obtusa var. formosana.
Taiwan's Chamaecyparis, almost all of which are Chamaecyparis formosensis, are often mixed with Chamaecyparis obtusa var. formosana, so they are often called Taiwanese Chamaecyparis, so if you hear people talking about Taiwanese Chamaecyparis, they are often included Chamaecyparis obtusa var. formosana.
Both grow in the mountains between 900 and 2600 meters, and the cypress is a close relative of the red dragonfly.
Taiwan's elm trees are more than a thousand years old and have a very long life span of thousands of years.
The strength and anti-mortal ability of cypress wood is better than that of red peony, and its essential oil after distillation can prevent termites and pests, and has calming and bactericidal effects.

Taiwan fir :
Taiwan fir grows in the mountains between 800-2700 meters above sea level, but most of them are distributed in the mountains between 1,500 and 2,500 meters in the middle.
This tree species is the tallest tree species in Asia, up to 90 meters and up to 3 meters in diameter.

Cunninghamia lanceolata var. konishii :
Cunninghamia lanceolata var. konishii was originally discovered in the mountains of Xinyi, Nantou, hence the name Dashan, whose wood has a strong aroma, so it is also known as the cedar.
The large cedars found in the mountains of Xinyi, Nantou, are distributed in the mountainous area at an altitude of 1800 meters, and are found in the mountainous areas north of the central part, distributed in the mountains between 1300 and 2800 meters above sea level.

Calocedrus formosana / Taiwan Incense Cedar :
Calocedrus formosana / Taiwan Incense Cedar grows in the mountainous area between 300 meters and 2000 meters above sea level. It is distributed at an altitude of about 1000 meters. It can be planted on flat land. Because of its beautiful tree shape, it is often used as a garden landscape of a building.
Xiao Nan, whose wood is golden yellow, commonly known as "yellow meat", its woody fragrance, fragrant and pleasant, its wood chips can be used as a burning incense, commonly known as "Taiwan sandalwood".
Xiao Nanmu itself is not easy to nodule, but because Xiao Nan of Taiwan often grows between rocky cliffs, when the root of the tree is crushed and injured by the rock wall, it will secrete oil and form a tumor. The texture of this part Dense, the water is sinking, and the aroma is pleasant, not volatile, can be used as agarwood, but the tree is extremely rare, often used beads, statues and other sculptures.
The wood aroma of eucalyptus will gradually fade away with the passage of time. Although Xiao Nan's aroma is more durable, it will also be the only tumor that has been condensed by Xiao Nan's root tumor, and its fragrance can last for a long time.

…………………………
The above is translation
The following is the original
…………………………

台灣的貴重樹木：針葉五木：紅檜、扁柏、台灣杉、巒大杉、肖楠。

珍葉五木：
紅檜(Chamaecyparis formosensis)、扁柏(Chamaecyparis obtusa var. formosana)、台灣杉(Taiwania cryptomerioides)、巒大杉(Cunninghamia lanceolata var. konishii)、肖楠(Calocedrus formosana / Taiwan Incense Cedar)，均為台灣原生種，極為珍貴，木材擁有特殊的香氣和色澤，皆屬於針葉樹，故稱之為針葉五木。

台灣五木：
是另一種台灣的貴重樹木的說法，將紅檜(Chamaecyparis formosensis)和扁柏(Chamaecyparis obtusa var. formosana)歸為同一類，稱之為台灣檜木，再加上台灣杉、巒大杉、肖楠、紅豆杉，合稱之台灣五木。

樹木保育：
紅檜(Chamaecyparis formosensis)、扁柏(Chamaecyparis obtusa var. formosana)、台灣杉(Taiwania cryptomerioides)、巒大杉(Cunninghamia lanceolata var. konishii)、肖楠(Calocedrus formosana / Taiwan Incense Cedar)，均為台灣原生種，皆屬於針葉樹，木材擁有特殊的香氣和色澤，極為珍貴。
在過去，因可做建材、薰香料、雕刻品、工藝品、棺材等等，其經濟價值甚高，被大量的砍伐，瀕臨滅絕，故皆已被列為保育類，禁止砍伐。
在台灣，森林是禁止砍伐的，但山坡地又可申請土地開發，故而一些擁有珍貴植物和動物的地方，會被列為保育地，甚至於國家公園。
常有不肖人士進山偷砍樹木，被稱之為山老鼠，所以林務局有編制巡山員，全國約1千餘人，此外還有森林警察，但森林警察乃是由一般行政警察所轉任，在職務/職權上，一直有著爭議，尚有待政府去解決。
在台灣，根據森林法的規定，上列的珍貴木材，除了砍伐者有罪，購買者和撿拾者亦有罪，可被判處6月以上5年以下有期徒刑，併科新臺幣30萬元以上300萬元以下罰金，嚴重者可加倍處分。
所以購買珍貴木材所製成的工藝品，或者去海邊撿拾漂流木，按照森林法的定義，也是有罪的。

木材的品級：
根據CNS 442 O1001 木材之分類，
紅檜、扁柏、巒大杉、肖楠這四種屬於一級木。
台灣杉則是二級木。
這個分類的標準，是根據材積-重量去區分的，也就是木材的硬度。

台灣檜木：
台灣檜木指紅檜(Chamaecyparis formosensis)和扁柏(Chamaecyparis obtusa var. formosana)兩者。
台灣的檜木，幾乎都是紅檜(Chamaecyparis formosensis)，且常和扁柏(Chamaecyparis obtusa var. formosana)混在一起生長，故常合稱之為台灣檜木，所以若你聽到人們在談論台灣檜木，常常是包含扁柏的。
兩者皆生長在900~2600公尺之間的山區，扁柏乃是紅檜的近親。
台灣檜木樹齡多超過一千年以上，壽命極長，可達數千年。
扁柏之木材強度、耐朽能力皆較紅檜為佳，且其經蒸餾後所可之精油，可防白蟻及害蟲，另具鎮定提神及殺菌功效。

台灣杉：
台灣杉生長在海拔800-2700公尺之間的山區，但大多數分佈於中部約1,500~2,500公尺之間的山區。
這個樹種是亞洲能長的最高的樹種，可高達90公尺和直徑達3公尺。

巒大杉：
巒大杉最初是在南投信義巒大山發現，故名巒大杉，其木材具濃郁香氣，所以又名香杉。
在南投信義巒大山發現的巒大杉分布於海拔1800公尺間的山區，而在中部以北的山區亦有發現，分布於海拔1300~2800公尺間的山區。

肖楠：
肖楠生長在海拔300公尺~2000公尺之間的山區，以海拔1000公尺左右，分布最多，但可栽種於平地，因其樹型優美，常被用做大樓住宅之庭園景觀。
肖楠，其木材呈金黃色，俗稱“黃肉仔”，其木質芬芳，清香可人，其木屑可作為燃香之用，俗稱『台灣檀香』。
肖楠木本身是不容易結瘤的體質，但因台灣的肖楠常生長在岩石峭壁之間，當樹根受到岩壁擠壓受傷時，就會分泌油脂，而結成瘤塊，此部分之質地緻密，入水即沉，且香氣宜人、不易揮發，可做沉香，但樹亮極為稀少，常被用過串珠、雕像等雕刻品。
檜木類的木材芳香會隨著時間流逝而逐漸消退，肖楠的香氣雖較持久，但也會，唯有肖楠根瘤所凝結的瘤塊，其香味能夠歷久彌新。

資料參考自
http://recreation.forest.gov.tw/epaper/2011/ePaper_10032-1.html
https://news.ltn.com.tw/news/supplement/paper/921068
http://ming-shian.blogspot.com/2014/05/10.html
http://www.5plus2edu.org.tw/joomla/index.php/2014-09-19-09-34-52
http://library.taiwanschoolnet.org/cyberfair2005/bdsps/generalization_2.html
https://news.ltn.com.tw/news/society/breakingnews/2414179
http://hello.area.com.tw/is_bs.cgi?areacode=ot009&bsid=6_4_1&vs=on
https://video.udn.com/news/462357
https://www.post.gov.tw/post/internet/W_stamphouse/index.jsp?ID=2803&file_name=D303